The Sea Inside

The Sea Inside (Spanish: Mar adentro) is a 2004 psychological drama film co-written and directed by Alejandro Amenábar, who also co-produced, scored and edited. It is based on the real-life story of Ramón Sampedro (played by Javier Bardem), who was left quadriplegic after a diving accident, and his 28-year campaign in support of euthanasia and the right to end his life. The film won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and won the Grand Jury Prize at the 61st Venice International Film Festival.

Plot

This is the life story of Spaniard Ramón Sampedro, who fought a 28-year campaign to win the right to end his own life with assisted suicide. The film explores Ramón's relationships with two women: Julia, a lawyer suffering from Cadasil syndrome who supports his cause, and Rosa, a local woman who wants to convince him that his life is worth living. Through the gift of his love, these two women are inspired to accomplish things they never previously thought possible.

Ramón, now 54 years old, has been fighting for 26 years for his right to die following a diving incident which left him paralysed from the neck down. He is unable to end his life by himself and does not wish to implicate his family or friends, as by Spanish law, they would be charged with murder or assisting a suicide. Following the death of his mother, he is cared for by his sister-in-law, Manuela. Ramón's elder brother José does not believe he should have the right to die; both Manuela and her son, Javier, believe in his case.

Ramón's friend Gené, who works for an organization fighting for the right to die, puts him in contact with Julia, a lawyer. As she seeks to learn more about him and his situation in order to fight for his cause, he recounts his past and his reasons for wanting to die: He says that there is no dignity in living paralysed. After seeing his story online, Rosa visits Ramón to convince him to live. He demands that she respect his wishes and she leaves, upset. Later, whilst DJing her part-time radio show, she apologises on air in the hopes that he is listening. She continues to visit, bringing her children, and the two strike up a friendship. Despite romantic interest in both women, Ramón maintains that he is spoken for by death.

Julia reads Ramón's memoir describing his life and experiences as a quadriplegic and urges him to publish it. He imagines flying from his bed to visit her on the beach. Later, she is hospitalised with a stroke and admitted to rehab to relearn how to walk. The two write letters to each other, sending updates of their lives. Ramón loses a court case for his right to die. Rosa, in tears, appears at his house and Ramón admits that he has planned a way to commit suicide without the direct and obvious involvement of anyone else.

Meanwhile, Padre Francisco, a quadriplegic Catholic priest, comes to convince Ramón to want to live. Ramón refuses to be carried downstairs and so the two men converse through the help of a church boy, who runs up and down to share their arguments. Angry and upset, Manuela asks him to leave. Julia visits to assist Ramón in writing his memoir whilst his family and friends discuss his right to die. Divided, they fight. But Ramón is unwavering in his wish. Again, he imagines that he is able-bodied, kissing Julia. Later, she admits that her condition will only become more severe and that she is planning to kill herself. But first, she would like to help Ramón.

Ramón and Javier work together to design and build a wheelchair for him in which he can appear in court to fight for his own right to die. His appeal is ultimately rejected, but Ramón eventually fulfils his wish nonetheless. Each of his friends and family complete a small action in his death; not enough to convict any of them of his murder or assisting his suicide. He records himself on a video camera, narrating his own death, before ingesting a cyanide-laced drink that kills him.

Cast

Sampedro family

• Javier Bardem as Ramón Sampedro
• Celso Bugallo as José Sampedro, Ramón's elder brother
• Mabel Rivera as Manuela, José's wife and Ramón's caregiver
• Tamar Novas as Javier Sampedro, Ramón's nephew
• Joan Dalmau as Joaquín Sampedro, Ramón and José's father

Ramon's friends

• Belén Rueda as Julia
• Alberto Jiménez as Germán, Julia's husband
• Lola Dueñas as Rosa
• Nicolás Fernández Luna as Cristian, Rosa's elder son
• Raúl Lavisier as Samuel, her younger son
• Clara Segura as Gené
• Francesc Garrido as Marc, Gené's husband

Others

• Josep Maria Pou as Padre Francisco, a quadriplegic Catholic priest
• Alberto Amarilla as Hermano Andrés
• Andrea Occhipinti as Santiago
• Federico Pérez Rey as Conductor (Driver)
• Xosé Manuel Olveira as Juez 1 (Judge 1)
• César Cambeiro as Juez 2
• Xosé Manuel Esperanto as Periodista 1 (Reporter 1)
• Yolanda Muiños as Periodista 2
• Adolfo Obregón as Ejecutivo (Executive)
• José Luis Rodríguez as Presentador (TV host)
• Julio Jordán as Encuadernador (Bookbinder)
• Juan Manuel Vidal as Amigo Ramón (Ramón's friend)
• Marta Larralde as Muchacha en la playa (Girl on beach)
• Jacob Ahlgren as himself (Baller)

Reception

Critical response

The film received positive reviews from critics. It currently holds an 85% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 133 reviews, with an average rating of 7.6/10. Its consensus summary states: "Held aloft by a transfixing performance from Javier Bardem as a terminally ill man who chooses to die, The Sea Inside transcends its melodramatic story with tenderness and grace." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 74 out of 100, based on 38 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Accolades

See also

• List of Spanish films of 2004
• List of submissions to the 77th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
• List of Spanish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
• Whose Life Is It Anyway? (1981)

External links

• at IMDb
• at Box Office Mojo
• in Encyclopedia of Contemporary Spanish Film. Eds. Alex Pinar and Salvador Jimenez Murguia. Rowman & Littlefield, 2018